ABSTRACT
Up to this point, exploration of the Uncanny Valley in human-like virtual characters had produced limited explanation as to how aspects such as facial expression and speech may inuence perception of the uncanny. Furthermore, while guidelines had been created that focused on how to reduce the uncanniness in empathetic human-like characters, no one had yet considered how the uncanny may be manipulated to enhance the fear factor for antagonist characters, intended to scare and disturb the audience. Antipathetic characters featured in the horror genre in games and lms* are designed with the intention to deliberately gratify the pleasure we can seek in frightening ourselves. In the survival horror genre, freakish, monstrous characters may seek out, confront and destroy
players, who rely upon weaponry, skill and survival tactics to escape from or defend themselves against these monster attacks. Set in Pennsylvania, the rst-person shooter (FPS) Left 4 Dead (commonly referred to as “L4D”; Valve, 2008) is centered on a group of civilian survivors who had escaped a pandemic virus that had caused hideous physiological and psychological mutation to the majority of citizens in the city of Faireld. e survivors included empathetic characters with a human-like appearance such as Louis, an assistant store manager (voiced by Earl Alexander), and Francis, a biker (voiced by Vince Valenzuela). e development team at Valve intended that the survivors would endure endless pursuit by those infected by the virus, represented as horric, mindless zombie characters with a hideous nonhuman-like appearance. If it was not the gurgling screams of the hoards of the infected, then the formidable, shocking screams of the scrawny, gray emaciated witch or the thunderous pounding and ferocious growls of the hulk-like Tank character signaled an imminent attack.
